Frankum’s Dictionary is a first-rate companion to Tucker’s set. It contains maps, cross-references, acronyms, and a photo section. The 600-plus-entry dictionary focuses on the conflict. Frankum’s book also contains a solid bibliography subdivided by subject. The 'Readers Notes' will help in navigating the material, and the author states that he made a conscious attempt to make the work accessible to novices as well as experts. Excellent starting point for general readers with an interest in military history and for researchers.
— Library Journal
In a completely rewritten edition of the Historical Dictionary of the War in Vietnam (2001), Millersville University of Pennsylvania history professor Frankum utilizes two decades of scholarship on the subject. His fifth book on the conflict contains approximately 700 entries that provide a balanced view, beginning with the start of the First Indochina War, in 1946, through the fall of Saigon, in 1975. The main portion of the book is, appropriately, the dictionary entry section. From one- or two-paragraph definitions for terms such as Napalm, Nixon Doctrine, and Viet Cong to multipage descriptions for entries such as Air war, Ho Chi Minh, and Tet Offensive, 1968, Frankum’s writing is consistently straightforward and accurate, and the topics he includes are appropriate....Frankum provides additional assistance to researchers by including a detailed chronology and introduction regarding the Vietnam War. However, the invaluable highlight for those wishing to delve further into the topic is a well-organized and extensive bibliography, in which references for hundreds of books are organized into subject area. A list of Internet resources is also provided. The Historical Dictionary of the War in Vietnam is a fine reference work for anyone wishing to have a related term clearly defined. Its magnificent bibliography should benefit even the most advanced researcher.
— Booklist
Frankum (Millersville Univ.) has written four previous books about the Vietnam War. This new volume revises Edwin Möise's Historical Dictionary of the Vietnam War (CH, Jun'02, 39-5566). It contains somewhat more entries (650 vs. 622), all written by Frankum. Although many of the entries have the same title as the 2001 edition, all have been rewritten to incorporate new information and recently released documentary evidence. In keeping with the current state of Vietnam War studies, this volume emphasizes international aspects of the conflict and gives the Vietnamese a larger voice. Political and military topics are especially well covered. The dictionary contains acronyms and abbreviations, maps (all but one of South Vietnam), a brief chronology (1945-2010), an introduction, entries ranging from a few words to several pages, a bibliographic essay, and a lengthy topical bibliography. Cross-references to dictionary entries are provided in boldface text. The bibliography emphasizes American sources and excludes journal articles. No photos are included. Persons, military units, battles, weapons, places, events, institutions, policies, and tactics and strategy are discussed. While the focus is on the United States and Indochina, coverage extends to other countries, both major and minor (e.g., the Soviet Union, the Philippines). The conflict involved all of Indochina, and Frankum appropriately covers people, organizations, and events in Laos and Cambodia as well as Vietnam....It is the best single-volume reference work on the Vietnam War. This is a useful resource for the reference collection of all libraries, especially those without the 2001 edition. Recommended. Lower-level undergraduates through researchers/faculty; general readers.
— Choice Reviews
This book includes some useful preliminary matter – a list of abbreviations and acronyms (always useful when you are reading about the army!), sketch maps of the corps tactical zones, a chronology and introduction. The last section is crucial for any serious student of Vietnam: a bibliography. This is no casual booklist as it runs from page 501 to page 599. The entries are properly classified so that it should be possible to track down a book on any sub-topic of the war without too much trouble. Dr Frankum’s book is a valuable aid for serious students of the war (American phase).
— Reference Reviews
With so many excellent reference sources available on the Vietnam War, including encyclopedias, almanacs, dictionaries, guides, chronologies, order of battles, factbooks, handbooks, and bibliographies, it is difficult to discern the place for yet another reference volume. However, one must admit that this new volume in the distinguished Scarecrow Press Historical Dictionaries of War, Revolution, and Civil Unrest series is a very good one. Frankum, former archivist at the Vietnam Center at Texas Tech University and now a professor at Millersville University of Pennsylvania, has established himself as one of the leading authorities on the war and the resources for its study. The volume is so comprehensively revised from Edwin Moise’s earlier historical dictionary (see ARBA 2003, entry 420) that it is an entirely new entry.
The volume follows the traditional format of alphabetically arranged entries that are extensively cross-referenced, lists of acronyms and abbreviations, maps, chronology, and an exceptional topical bibliography, probably the best presently in print. Unlike most previous comprehensive reference books, Frankum spells all Vietnamese words in correct Vietnamese form with diacritical marks rather than employ the more popular Americanized spellings. Everything about this source is first rate.
For libraries that already have classic references such as Spencer C. Tucker’s The Encyclopedia of the Vietnam War(2d ed.; see ARBA 2012, entry 686) or James H. Willbanks’ Vietnam War Almanac (see ARBA 2010, entry 621), which surprisingly Frankum fails to list in his reference works bibliography, this new volume is not, despite its excellence, a necessity. However, if a library does not have either of the previous volumes, then this reasonably priced volume is a highly recommended addition.
— American Reference Books Annual